Bud Selig spoke publicly Thursday for the first time since Melky Cabrera’s 50-game suspension for a positive drug test was announced a day before, but rather than address media questions about the topic he deferred to the day’s other baseball news.
“How about what Felix Hernandez did for the Mariners yesterday?” asked Selig when a reporter questioned if he thought there was still a rampant steroid problem in the league in light of Cabrera, this year’s All-Star Game MVP, testing positive for grossly inflated testosterone levels. “I’ve always been a fan of King Felix, and let me tell you that perfect game couldn’t have happened to a nicer young man.”
Reporters further questioned Selig — who makes tens of millions of dollars a year as commissioner — on Cabrera, but he wouldn’t budge.
“With a young fireballer like Felix, you never know, he might get another perfect game someday,” said Selig in response to a reporter who asked if influence of BALCO founder Victor Conte was perhaps still strong in the Bay Area. “That’s the thing about this game. You can spend your whole life around it like I have and you just never know what the heck is going on.”
